MADRID
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has expressed his support for a joint defense project with the European Union on the condition that it did not duplicate defense resources.
Addressing a joint press conference with Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia Margallo during official talks in Spanish capital Madrid, Stoltenberg called on Europe to make sure all present and future defense initiatives would complement NATO capacities.
European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker had called on EU member states Sunday to develop a combined military force against external threats, such as the one posed by Russia in the aftermath of the Ukraine crisis.
The secretary-general said it was up to the EU bloc to decide on a European joint defense project. "We will be pleased by any major investment in defense, which will strengthen both, NATO and the EU. But, duplication will preoccupy us. The defense resources must be used in the most efficient way," Stoltenberg said.
Margallo said the idea of a "joint army in Europe" was a long-term project included in the 2007 Lisbon Treaty, an international deal which reformed the EU structure, its policies and the way it functions.
Juncker told Germany's Welt am Sonntag newspaper Sunday that the EU needed a joint army to defend its values, react against external threats and increase its influence in international affairs. “A joint army of Europeans would have given a clear answer to Russia that we are serious about defending the European values," he was quoted by the daily.
Stoltenberg argued that Russia was acting much more aggressive, and using more force to change the borders in Ukraine.
"It is important to respect the (cease-fire) deal reached in Minsk and withdraw tanks," he added.
He also noted that the Patriot missile deployment in Turkey aimed only to protect Turkey, ruling out any NATO operation against Daesh in Syria and Iraq.
He said the dialogue between the alliance and Iraqi central government continued to boost Iraq's institutions and defense, adding that they were still assessing a related request from Baghdad.
